Serbia will push for a solution to the Kosovo problem following the example of Hong Kong, Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said in an interview with the Tanjug news agency on Tuesday.

Serbia said on Monday it had "fundamental objections" to a 14-point framework for the future of Kosovo and insisted mediators explicitly rule out a unilateral declaration of independence by the province.

The U.S., European Union, Russian envoys and Albanian leaders of Kosovo are holding talks on the future of the disputed province.

Belgrade is considering all options for responding to a possible declaration of independence by Kosovo, Serbia's foreign minister said Friday, echoing the premier's comments after yesterday's talks.

Kosovo's Prime Minister Agim Ceku says the Serbian province will declare independence unilaterally if current negotiations on its status do not "open a way for us."

Two of the leading politicians involved in the ongoing talks on the future of Kosovo noted recently that the discussions are likely to lead nowhere. There are perhaps some other basic points regarding Kosovo that have become obscured in the heated debates of recent months and are worth recalling.

Envoys from the United States, the European Union and Russia began talks today with Serbian leaders on the future status of Kosovo. The mediators held talks in Belgrade with Serbian President Boris Tadic and Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, and Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic.

An adviser to the Serbian prime minister warned Thursday that Kosovo could become "a unique NATO state" if its status is decided on the basis of the Ahtisaari plan.

Serbia will not recognize Kosovo's independence in exchange for its membership to the European Union, the Serbian ambassador to Russia said.

The United States and its European allies say they will present the United Nations Security Council with a new draft resolution this week on the future status of the breakaway Serbian territory of Kosovo. Victoria Cavaliere reports from VOA's United Nations bureau Russia has threatened to veto any measure that grants independence to Kosovo.

U.S. President George W. Bush said yesterday during a visit to Albania that any talks on the future status of Kosovo must have the goal of "certain independence." Bush spoke to reporters in Tirana after meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha.

Serbia's prime minister said Saturday that granting Kosovo independence would set a precedent in violating international law. Speaking at an economic forum in Russia's second city, St. Petersburg, Vojislav Kostunica said: "Creating an independent state of Kosovo on the territory of Serbia, an internationally-recognized state, would set a severe precedent of violating international law."